U.S. patent number 6,352,445 [Application Number 09/871,205] was granted by the patent office on 2002-03-05 for connector for memory cards.
This patent grant is currently assigned to DDK Ltd.. Invention is credited to Hitoshi Kikuchi, Sadao Kuboi, Kazuhiro Sato, Kazunori Takei, Takanobu Yoshimi.
United States Patent |
6,352,445 |
Takei , et al. |
March 5, 2002 |
Connector for memory cards
Abstract
A connector for memory cards includes a connector body having
side walls on both sides and a rear wall. The side walls are formed
over their length with card receiving portions to meet shapes of
side edges and the number of the memory cards to be used. The
connector further includes card identification terminals made of a
springy metal strip arranged in a plurality of steps in inner
surface of one of the side walls, identification tabs arranged
spaced from the card identification terminal prior to insertion of
a card, for identifying an existence of an inserted card with the
aid of the contact between the inserted card and the card
identification terminal, and terminals suitably arranged on the
rear wall for writing electronic information into cards and reading
stored information from cards. Each of the card identification
terminals includes a contact portion to contact the card, a fixing
portion to be fixed to the connector body, and a connection portion
to be connected to a board and further includes an engaging portion
on an extension of the contact portion, which engaging portion
engages an anchoring portion of each of insertion grooves formed in
the connector body.
Inventors: |
Takei; Kazunori (Tokyo,
JP), Kikuchi; Hitoshi (Tokyo, JP), Sato;
Kazuhiro (Tokyo, JP), Kuboi; Sadao (Tokyo,
JP), Yoshimi; Takanobu (Tokyo, JP) |
Assignee: |
DDK Ltd. (JP)
|
Family
ID: |
26593225 |
Appl.
No.: |
09/871,205 |
Filed: |
May 31, 2001 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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Jun 2, 2000 [JP] |
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2000-165932 |
Jun 22, 2000 [JP] |
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2000-187209 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
439/489; 439/188;
439/218; 439/541.5; 439/64 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01R
13/7033 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
H01R
13/703 (20060101); H01R 13/70 (20060101); H01R
003/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;439/631,632,489,541.5,188,64,159,326,377 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Bradley; P. Austin
Assistant Examiner: Hammond; Briggitte R.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Baker Botts LLP
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A connector for memory cards comprising a connector body having
side walls on both sides and a rear wall, said side walls formed
over their length with card receiving portions to fit shapes of
side edges and the number of the memory cards to be used, card
identification terminals arranged in a plurality of steps on an
inner surface of said side walls, and terminals suitably arranged
on said rear wall for writing electronic information into cards and
reading stored information from cards.
2. The connector for memory cards as set forth in claim 1, wherein
said terminals arranged on said rear wall each comprise a contact
portion to contact said card, a fixing portion to be fixed to said
connector body, and a connection portion to be connected to a board
and further comprise an engaging portion on an extension of said
contact portion, and wherein said connector body is formed with
insertion grooves for inserting said terminals, respectively, and
said insertion grooves are each provided with an anchoring portion
to engage said engaging portion of said terminal.
3. The connector for memory cards as set forth in claim 1, wherein
one of said side walls of said connector body is provided with said
card identification terminals made of a springy metal strip
arranged in a plurality of steps, and identification tabs are each
arranged spaced from said card identification terminal prior to
insertion of a card, for identifying an existence of an inserted
card with the aid of the contact between the inserted card and the
card identification terminal.
4. The connector for memory cards as set forth in claim 3, wherein
said card identification terminals are arranged in two steps one
above the other so that when a thinner card is inserted into the
connector, said thinner card contacts the card identification
terminal in the lower step, and when a thicker card is inserted
into the connector, said thicker card contacts both the card
identification terminals in the upper and lower steps.
5. The connector for memory cards as set form in claim 4, wherein
said connector body is provided with a front wall having a card
insertion opening for inserting each type of cards.
6. The connector for memory cards as set forth in claim 1, wherein
one of said side walls of said connector body is provided with said
card identification terminals made of a springy metal strip
arranged in a plurality of insertion spaces, and identification
tabs are each arranged spaced from said card identification
terminal prior to insertion of a card, for identifying an existence
of an inserted card with the aid of the contact between the
inserted card and the card identification terminal.
7. The connector for memory cards as set forth in claim 6, wherein
said card identification terminals are arranged in two steps one
above the other so that when a card of one type is inserted into
the upper card insertion space of the connector, said card contacts
the card identification terminal located nearer to an insertion
opening for the card, and when a card of the other type is inserted
into the connector, said card contacts the card identification
terminal remoter from the insertion opening for the card.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a connector for a plurality of memory
cards different in thickness and type, which selectively receives
these memory cards and is able to detect or identify the different
cards and to prevent terminals provided in the connector from
buckling when a card is inserted into the connector.
Memory cards different in thickness as media for information have
been mounted on and connected to information apparatuses through a
respective connector exclusive to one particular type of the memory
card among the number of the memory cards for reading information
stored in the card and storing information into the card. In
assembling the connector of the prior art, moreover, terminals used
for identifying card are inserted into the connector from the
opposite side of card insertion opening of the connector and fixed
thereat so as to permit free ends of the terminals to be free or
movable.
In recent years, the information apparatuses and hence their boards
have been rapidly miniaturized, so that areas occupied by the
boards have been limited, as a result of which a pluralization of
the board has naturally been introduced. On the other hand, it is
very inconvenient to have a plurality of connectors exclusive to
the memory cards as described above, particularly in exchanging the
memory cards. What is worse still, the plurality of connectors make
larger the information apparatuses, which are incompatible with the
miniaturization and in no way suitable for portable
apparatuses.
In the connectors for memory cards of the prior art, moreover, the
free ends of the terminals are free or not restrained as described
above. Therefore, when the cards are being inserted into the
connectors, cards tend to jam with contact portions of terminals to
cause buckling of the cards, leading to wrong electrical
connection. With the free ends of the terminals not restrained,
furthermore, substantially constant contact pressure between the
cards and the terminals could not be obtained owing to irregularity
in gaps between the terminals, so that stable contact between the
cards and the terminals could not be obtained.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved connector
for memory cards, which eliminates any irregularity in gap between
terminals to obtain a stable contact between terminals and card,
and prevents terminals from being buckled when a card is inserted
into the connector, thereby preventing any wrong electrical
connection and which is able to selectively receive a plurality of
cards different in thickness and type to operate information
apparatuses without requiring any change in areas occupied by
boards.
The connector according to the invention can be used without the
aid of any other connectors for identifying a plurality of kinds of
memory cards used with great frequency and includes card
identification terminals provided on inner surfaces of connector
side wall steps or inner surfaces of card insertion spaces. With
steps provided for receiving the cards, the card identification
terminals are arranged on the upper and lower steps, the terminals
in the lower step sensing the insertion of the thinner cards and
the terminals in the upper step sensing the insertion of the
thicker cards with the aid of the terminals in the lower step and
transmitting the detected information to an information
apparatus.
Moreover, when a plurality of cards are inserted into the
respective card insertion spaces provided in the interior of the
connector, the card of one kind inserted in the upper space
contacts the card identification terminal near to the opening of
the space, and the card of the other kind inserted in the lower
space contacts the card identification terminal remote from the
opening of the space, these terminals projecting into the spaces
for contacting the cards to identify them.
The terminals each comprises a contact portion to contact a card, a
fixing portion to be fixed to a connector body and a connection
portion to be connected to a board and further comprise an engaging
portion on an extension of said contact portion. The connector body
is formed with insertion grooves for inserting the terminals, and
the insertion grooves are each provided with an anchoring portion
to engage the engaging portion of the terminal.
The connector for memory cards according to the invention has the
following significant effects.
(1) The connector according to the invention can be used with card
of a plurality of kinds without the aid of any other connectors,
thereby contributing to the miniaturization of information
apparatuses and reduction in manufacturing cost and the areas and
spaces occupied by boards.
(2) The connector according to the invention is provided with card
identification terminals on inner side walls, thereby enabling
cards of a number of kinds to be inserted selectively or in stacked
condition.
(3) According to the invention terminals are each provided with an
engaging portion at its free end, and the connector body is
provided with anchoring portions adapted to engage the engaging
portions of the terminals, thereby eliminating jamming and buckling
of cards when being inserted into the card receiving spaces of the
connector.
(4) Eliminating the jamming and buckling of the cards according to
the invention completely prevents any wrong electrical
connection.
(5) According to the invention terminals are each provided with an
engaging portion at its free end, and the connector body is
provided with anchoring portions adapted to engage the engaging
portions of the terminals so that no irregularity in gap between
terminals, thereby accomplishing constant contact pressure between
the terminals and cards.
(6) As the gaps between the terminals, and contact pressure between
the terminals and cards are stable in the connector according to
the invention, stable contact between the terminals and cards can
be obtained.
The invention will be more fully understood by referring to the
following detailed specification and claims taken in connection
with the appended drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a connector for memory
cards according to one embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the connector shown in FIG.
1;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the connector shown in FIG. 1
illustrating the relation between card identification terminals and
card identification terminal tabs prior to insertion of cards;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the connector shown in FIG. 1 just
when a card (MMC card) has been inserted thereinto;
FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the connector shown in FIG. 1 just
when a card (SD card) has been inserted thereinto;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating the rear side of a
connector for memory cards according to another embodiment of the
invention;
FIG. 7 is a partly sectional explanatory perspective view
illustrating card identification terminals and tabs of the
connector shown in FIG. 6;
FIG. 8 is a front elevation of the connector shown in FIG. 6;
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the connector for memory cards of a
further embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the connector shown in FIG. 9
partly illustrating in detail;
FIG. 11 is a sectional perspective view of the connector taken
along a section A--A in FIG. 10; and
FIG. 12 is an explanatory perspective view for explaining switch
terminals of the connector.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a connector in accordance with one
embodiment of the invention is shown in perspective views, which is
suitable for use with SD cards and MMC cards. The connector 1
comprises a top cover 2, side walls 3 and 4 on both sides, and a
rear wall 5. The side walls 3 and 4 are each formed along its
overall length with a shoulder or step adapted to meet a side edge
of an SD card. FIG. 2 illustrates the connector according to the
invention which has been turned upside down. As shown in FIG. 2,
the side wall 3 is provided on its inner surface with card
identification terminals 6 and 7 located one above the other for
identifying cards. Suitably arranged on the rear wall 5 are
terminals 8 for writing electronic information into cards or
reading stored information from cards, while suitably arranged at
an appropriate location in the side wall 4 is a protection terminal
9 for the write-inhibit as in the conventional manner.
As shown in sectional views of FIGS. 3 to 5, the card
identification terminals 6 and 7 made of a springy metal strip are
arranged one above the other on the inside of the side wall 3.
Moreover, metal identification tabs 10 and 11 for identifying the
existence of a card with the aid of contact of the identification
terminals 6 and 7 are shown in FIG. 3 in a state that they are
spaced from the terminals 6 and 7, respectively, when no cards have
been inserted into the connector. FIG. 4 illustrates the state that
an MMC card 12 has been fully inserted into the connector 1,
wherein the insertion of the card 12 has been sensed by the fact
that the terminal 6 has been forced into contact with the tab 10 by
the insertion of the card 12. In FIG. 5, an SD card has been
inserted into the connector 1 and the insertion has been sensed by
the contact of the terminal 7 with the tab 11 in addition to the
contact of the terminal 6 with the tab 10.
Although the connector for use with MMC and SD cards has been
described in the above embodiment, it is to be understood that a
connector may be formed with plural number of steps to have a
cross-section different from that in the illustrated embodiments
adapted to fit side edges of the plural types of memory cards and
further provided with a plurality of card identification terminals
and tabs arranged on one side wall in order to accommodate
requirements different from those in the illustrated
embodiment.
FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate a connector 16 in accordance with another
embodiment of the invention. The connector 16 is formed with card
insertion spaces 14 and 15 for memory cards A (SSFDC cards) and
memory stick cards B (MS cards), respectively, and has terminals 17
and 18 made of a springy metal strip fixed to an inner wall of the
connector 16 and metal identification tabs 19 provided on the inner
wall. When a memory card A and a memory stick card B are suitably
inserted into the card insertion spaces 14 and 15 of the connector
16, respectively, the terminals 17 and 18 are moved forward by the
forward edges of the cards so that ends of the terminals 17 and 18
are brought into contact with the metal identification tabs 19,
respectively, thereby electrically sensing the insertion of these
cards.
As shown in FIG. 7, when a plurality of cards are inserted into the
respective card insertion spaces provided in the interior of the
connector, the card of one kind inserted in the upper space
contacts the card identification terminal near to the opening of
the space, and the card of the other kind inserted in the lower
space contacts the card identification terminal remote from the
opening of the space. These terminals project into the spaces for
contacting the cards to identify them.
The connector 16 of an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8 is provided
with a front wall 21 formed with slots or card insertion openings
20 for inserting the cards, as the case may be. Marks or names
indicating the cards may be provided on the front surface of the
front wall 21 to prevent users from inserting wrong types of cards
different from the proper types.
A connector 30 for memory cards according to a further embodiment
of the invention will be explained by referring to FIGS. 9 to 12.
The connector 30 for memory cards mainly comprises a connector body
32, a long terminal 34 for cards A, a short terminal 36 for the
cards A, a terminal 38 for cards B, and card identification
terminals 68, 70 and 72 for the respective cards. The connector 30
for memory cards can receive two different kinds of cards 52 and 54
therein, for example, an SSFDC card in the upper space and an MS
card in the lower space.
The components of the connector 30 will be successively explained
hereinafter with reference to FIGS. 9 to 12. First, the three
terminals 34, 36 and 38 described above will be explained which are
subject features of this illustrated embodiment. These terminals
34, 36 and 38 are made of a metal by the well-known press-working.
Brass, beryllium bronze and phosphor bronze are used in the most
cases for this purpose because they substantially comply with the
imposed requirements for the springiness and electric
conductivity.
These terminals 34, 36 and 38 each mainly comprise a contact
portion adapted to contact a card, a fixing portion to be fixed to
the connector body 32 and a connection portion adapted to contact a
board. These terminals are divided into the long terminals 34 and
the short terminals 36 respectively adapted to contact the cards A
52 in the upper space and the terminals 38 adapted to contact the
cards B 54 in the lower space. The respective terminals are fixed
in the connector body 32 with their contact portions projecting
from insertion grooves for the terminals into insertion spaces 64
and 66 for the cards to bring them into contact with the
corresponding cards inserted into the connector.
The long and short terminals 34 and 36 for the card A are each
provided with an engaging portion 40 contiguous to the contact
portion 42. In assembling this connector, these long and short
terminals 34 and 36 are inserted into the insertion grooves 48 of
the connector body 32 from the opposite side of the opening of the
insertion space 64 of the connector for the card A and fixed
thereat by press-fitting. With this insertion of the terminals into
the insertion grooves in assembling, the free ends of the terminals
34 and 36 are positioned on that side toward which the cards are
inserted into the connector 32, while the engaging portions 40 of
the terminals 34 and 36 engage anchoring portions 50 of the
insertion grooves 48 of the connector body 32, with the result that
the card A 52 can be smoothly inserted into the insertion space 64
of the connector without jamming with the two terminals 34 and 36.
In the illustrated embodiment, there are provided the two kinds of
terminals as the long and short terminals 34 and 36 for the card A
52 in order to make them compatible with the positions where they
contact the inserted card A 52. Positions of the connection
portions of the terminals 34 and 36 are suitably determined so as
to correspond to the pattern of the board.
In assembling the connector, the terminal 38 for the card B is
inserted into the insertion groove of the connector body 32 from
that side toward which the card B is inserted into the insertion
space 66 and fixed to the connector body 32. With this insertion of
the terminals into the insertion groove in such a direction, the
free end of the terminal 38 is positioned remotely from the opening
of the insertion space for the card B so that the card B can be
smoothly inserted into the insertion space without any jamming of
the leading end of the card B with the free end of the terminal, in
conjunction with the contact portion of the terminal 38 generally
curved in order to obtain the stable contact with the card.
Therefore, the terminal 38 needs no engaging portion corresponding
to the engaging portions 40 continuous to the contact portions 42
of the long and short terminals 34 and 36. However, the terminal 38
may be provided with such an engaging portion in order to more
improve the stability in the contact with the card as the case may
be. The terminal 38 is provided with a connection portion at a
location suitably determined so as to correspond to the pattern of
the board.
The connector body 32 is made of a plastic material by the known
injection molding. Materials from which the connector body 32 is
made are required to have a dimensional stability and a high
mechanical strength and to be inexpensive, and hence polybutylene
terephthalate (PBT), polyamide (PA) and polycarbonate (PC) are used
in most cases for this purpose.
As shown in FIG. 9, the connector body 32 is formed with the
insertion space 64 for the card A 52 and the insertion space 66 for
the card B 54, and further formed with insertion grooves for fixing
therein the card identification terminals 68, 70 and 72. The
insertion grooves for receiving the long and short terminals 34 and
36 are provided with the anchoring portions 50 extending in the
direction opposite to the inserting direction of the card 52 and
adapted to engage the engaging portions 40 of the long and short
terminals 34 and 36. The anchoring portions 50 may extend in that
direction by any suitable distance so long as the anchoring
portions 50 permit to engage the engaging portions 40 of the long
and short terminals 34 and 36.
Moreover, the connector body 32 is provided with positioning pins
60 extending from its surface facing to the board for facilitating
the positioning of the connector relative to the board. The
positioning pins 60 may be formed integrally with or separately
from the connector body 32. The connector body in the illustrated
embodiment is a U-shaped body.
The respective card identification terminals 68, 70 and 72 will be
explained by referring to FIG. 12. Similarly to the terminals 34,
36 and 38, these terminals 68, 70 and 72 are made of a metal by the
well-known press-working. The same materials as those for the
terminals 34, 36 and 38 may be used in the most cases because they
substantially comply with the imposed requirements for the
springiness and electric conductivity.
The card identification terminal 70 is arranged in the connector
body with its contact portion projecting into the upper insertion
space 64 so that when the card 52 is inserted into the upper
insertion space 64, the card 52 contacts the contact portion of the
card identification terminal 70 and the free end of the card
identification terminal 70 deforms to contact the card
identification terminal 68, thereby detecting whether the card 52
has been inserted or not.
The card identification terminal 72 is arranged in the connector
body with its contact portion projecting into the lower insertion
space 66 so that when the card B 54 is inserted into the insertion
space 66, the card B 54 contacts the contact portion of the card
identification terminal 72 and the free end of the card
identification terminal 72 deforms to contact the card
identification terminal 68, thereby detecting whether the card B 54
has been inserted or not.
As described above, the card identification terminal 68 fixed with
its both ends to the connector body 32 has contact portions adapted
to contact the card identification terminals 70 and 72,
respectively, thereby detecting the insertion of the cards A 52 and
B 54.
Metal fitting 56 are often used in connecting the connector 30 for
memory cards to a board, in order to prevent the connector from
being moved relative to the board due to jamming of a card being
inserted into the connector 30. The metal fittings 56 are also
formed of a metal by the well-known press working and connected to
the board together with the terminals and card identification
terminals by means of reflow soldering.
In this embodiment, there are provided write-inhibit terminals 62
whose contact portions extend into the insertion space 64 so as to
contact a card 52. While there are two write-inhibit terminals in
the illustrated embodiment, they may be dispensed with as the case
may be.
While the invention has been particularly shown and described with
reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be
understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and other
changes in form and details can be made therein without departing
from the spirit and scope of the invention.
* * * * *